Wnba Draft

ARTICLES ABOUT WNBA DRAFT BY DATE - PAGE 2

Sue Bird and her Connecticut teammates dominated Friday's WNBA Draft much like they did the women's college basketball season. Bird was picked first by the Seattle Storm, one of four players taken from the unbeaten NCAA champion Huskies in the top six selections. Teammates Swin Cash was selected second by Detroit, Asjha Jones fourth by Washington and Tamika Williams sixth by Minnesota. Connecticut is the first school to have four players selected in the first round of the draft. "That will be a record that will stand for a while," WNBA president Val Ackerman said.

Marynell Meadors pulled out a notepad every chance she got at postseason college tournaments to rank the nation's top basketball players and stage mock drafts. The Sol's director of scouting since the team's inaugural 2000 season has done her homework, but then so has every other scout, head coach and general manager for today's WNBA Draft. It will be televised at 11:30 a.m. on ESPN2 (first round) and NBA.com television (all four rounds). "We would sit around the table while we were eating, take our pads and take turns picking everybody in every conceivable order," Meadors said.

Jeff Van Gundy, who resigned as coach of the New York Knicks in December, is expected to be named head coach of the WNBA's Washington Mystics today, according to sources in both leagues. Van Gundy compiled a 248-172 record in just over six seasons with the Knicks, taking them to the NBA Finals in 1999, where they lost to the San Antonio Spurs. Van Gundy has been doing some television commentary since leaving the Knicks, but he also had been rumored as a possible successor to Lenny Wilkens in Toronto.

Looking for more size and strength up front, the Sol traded veteran Miami product Tracy Reid to the Cleveland Rockers for forward/center Pollyanna Johns-Kimbrough. In addition, the Sol traded its first-round pick (13th overall) in this year's WNBA Draft to Phoenix for the 15th overall. To make the deal, Cleveland traded Johns-Kimbrough and the 15th pick in this year's draft to Phoenix for the Mercury's eighth pick. Phoenix dealt Johns-Kimbrough and the 15th pick to Miami for the injury-riddled Reid and the 13th pick.

The Sol placed guard Milena Flores and rookie center Levys Torres on the injured list after Sunday's practice at AmericanAirlines Arena. Ron Rothstein, general manager and coach, trimmed the final two players to meet the league-mandated 11-player roster for Thursday's 7 p.m. home opener against the New York Liberty. Flores and Torres must sit out a minimum of three games. Flores, a second-year point guard, was placed on the injured list with a high right ankle sprain and medial collateral ligament sprain in her right knee, suffered in practice on May 16. She has been wearing a knee brace and ankle support.

The changing of the guard in the WNBA begins with Monday's televised season opener between the four-time league champion Houston Comets and Los Angeles Sparks. The retirement of Cynthia Cooper and season-ending knee injury to Sheryl Swoopes have made the Comets vulnerable. Houston expected to be without Cooper. The MVP of all four WNBA championships retired after last season and became the coach of the Phoenix Mercury. But Swoopes' injury came as a shock. Last season's MVP, scoring leader and Defensive Player of the Year tore her left anterior cruciate ligament and damaged her meniscus during a pickup game and was lost for the season.

Sol management is still buzzing over Ruth Riley, its top pick in Friday's WNBA Draft. Kim Stone, the Sol's senior director of operations, said the Notre Dame center, taken with the fifth overall pick, is one of college basketball's most recognizable names and will help in ticket sales and promoting women's pro basketball in South Florida. Riley was expected to go first, second or third in the league's first non-expansion year draft. "I haven't seen the numbers yet as far as ticket sales, but I know people are already talking about her," Stone said Saturday.

Seattle, plagued by injuries last season, will definitely have a better season than 6-26 after drafting Australian teenage phenom Lauren Jackson No. 1 in Friday's WNBA Draft. Storm coach Lin Dunn, former University of Miami basketball coach, plans to build the team around the versatile 6-foot-5, 19-year-old center who led Australia to a silver medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. "She is a great player, a young player with tons of talent," Dunn said. "She can step outside, she can shoot the 3-pointer, she can put the ball on the floor, and she can post up. Those are things that if you get a kid who's 19-20 years old, you want to build your team around."

EASTERN CONFERENCE Charlotte Sting COACH: Anne Donovan SELECTIONS: No. 2: Kelly Miller, 5-10, G, Georgia; 18: Tammy Sutton-Brown, 6-4, C, Rutgers; 34: Jennifer Phillips, 6-3, F, Xavier; 50: Reshea Bristol, 5-10, G, Arizona. OF NOTE: With Miller, the 8-24 Sting went with a point guard that can move the ball up the court. She has the ability to score from the point, can handle the ball and stretch the defense out at shooting guard. She will serve as an apprentice behind 30-year-old two-time Olympian and Temple coach Dawn Staley.

Most of the expected drama at Tuesday's WNBA Draft happened beforehand, or not at all. Five-time Olympian Teresa Edwards, the most anticipated new player for this season, will not be wearing a WNBA jersey as expected. Talks between the league and Edwards broke down Monday over money, and Edwards refused to sign a contract. She will be the only U.S. Olympian not playing in the WNBA this summer. "I'll stay in shape, don't worry," Edwards said. The Utah Starzz had already traded for Jennifer Azzi, pushing former Florida International University All-American Dalma Ivanyi out of the starting point guard picture.